What is your wish?
by luv animemanga forever
Summary: Len slipped into a coma after an accident. After visiting him in the hospital, Ryotaro went home to suddenly find out that Len's spirit was following him. People said that a spirit only existed when it still had lingering desires, so for Len to return to his body, they needed to find out what it was that he wanted to fulfill. But time wasn't exactly on their side. RyoLen, SA
1. Coma

_**A/N:**__ Hey everyone! It's me again. I have come back from the death... at least I think so. I have no idea how this came to me, but it seemed fun so I decided to write and post it up here. The idea itself it's not that new to begin with, but I hope that you guys will enjoy it as much as I enjoy writing it. And this time, I'm going to update more regularly than before. I'm going to work hard to keep the chapters coming fequently._

_**Disclaimer: **__La Corda D'Oro doesn't belong to me, all the characters in here belongs to Yuki Kure-sama. _

_**Warning: **__This is un-betaed everyone. I tried hard to make it less of a hassle for you to read, but if there's any mistake you may find in here, please bear it with me. And for those who have somehow missed the notification in the summary, I would like to inform you once again that this story is Shounen-ai ( SA ), which is boys love, boy x boy. So if you're not comfortable with it, please don't read it._

_**Genre: **__Supernatural, romance, hurt/comfort, angst, slight humor._

_And keep in mind that though I based this on the main series, I have eliminated some details to make more room for this relationship between them to work._

_Thank you for listening to my rambling. Now, enjoy._

_**Chapter 1: **_Coma

Ryotaro shifted uncomfortably in his seats, all the music competition's participants had been asked to gathered in the Music room. The others were chatting happily with each other, he looked around with furrowed brows... Had he been the only one to notice that someone was missing from the picture? He found himself asking as he observed them talk about random things that were supposed to be funny. They didn't seem to at all notice or care about the fact that Tsukimori Len, the one who won the competition not too long ago, wasn't there. Or was it just him being too sensitive?

He knew that he probably shouldn't care, but the fact that he came second, behind that guy and that the very same guy who he had set out to beat next time round wasn't there when he was supposed to did somewhat bother him. And Tsukimori had never been late, never. The only time the pianist had ever witnessed him running late was due to the fact that he was locked up in a closet, so it didn't count.

So why now?

Tapping the tip of his shoe gently down the floor, Ryotaro tried not to show the build up frustration of not knowing what was happening to his rival that could have resulted in him arriving late. He convinced himself that everything was fine and that there was nothing for him to be so worked up about... Yes, nothing to worry about... Even so, he felt this feeling of uneasiness started to swell inside his stomach, which wasn't helping. His instincts had never been wrong, they hardly ever surfaced, but whenever they had been strong enough to draw his attention... they had never been wrong.

Great, and now he was worrying about Tsukimori Len, the walking ice-cube... Shutting his eyes, Ryotaro tried to dismiss this weird feeling as best as he could, concentrating fully on getting himself to believe that maybe for once, his damn instincts were wrong. He had had a long day of studying, playing soccer and everything, maybe the tiredness was affecting his mind, making it create false insecure feelings.

Just when his mind was a messed up jumble, the door slid opened and temporarily snapped him out of his train of slowly deteriorating thoughts. Kanazawa went in, but he was wearing a serious look on his face, making the whole room quiet almost instantly. However, he didn't say anything right away as he closed the door behind him and stood there, just looking at them.

" Uhm... Kanaya-sensei?" Hihara had managed to break the silent and gradually intensifying atmosphere. " What was that you wanted to speak to us about?" He asked, trying keep his voice as cheery as possible, but the hint of hesitation was still there, he clearly felt somewhat intimidated by the man's sudden and unusual solemn expression.

Ryotaro's face darkened, he knew it. Something was wrong, he knew it! He was right all along. But what was going on? Did it... did it have anything to do with Tsukimori?

The old man sighed in defeat before looking at them again as he began telling them what he originally called them all here for. " One week ago, I received some... disturbing news." Ryotaro studied the man before him, he couldn't help but feel somewhat nervous since the man was having quite a hard time spelling out whatever it was that he had in mind. " Apparently, Tsukimori had an accident. He was hit by a car."

" What?!"

The pianist's eyes were widened, what did he just say? He swallowed, trying to calm himself down to have a clear mind about this. " One week ago? Why didn't you tell us sooner?"

Kanazawa sighed. " Yes, I should have informed you sooner. In the beginning, according to the doctors' thorough examination, there was no serious injury, he should have healed nicely without complications, so I saw no point in making you all work up about it. But, one week had passed, and he hasn't woken up yet."

" W-why?" Ryotaro pushed the subject, wanting to know exactly what was happening.

" The doctors, despite finding no reason for this to occur, concluded that Tsukimori had slipped into a coma." Kanazawa finished his job of informing with another sigh as he closed his eyes. It was troublesome, really, as a teacher, as if finding out that one of your students was hospitalized for God-knows-how-long wasn't hard enough, he had to break the news to the boy's friends too...

Life was cruel and unexpected, and that had never been wrong. He thought darkly to himself before opening his eyes again only to meet the worried expressions on the kids' faces. " And since you guys seem to be somewhat closer to him than his _actual_ classmates, I think that you have the right to know what is going."

Ryotaro's heart raced wildly in his chest, one week, one week?! Now that he thought about it, it wasn't at all hard to realize that indeed the violinist had been absent from school the passed week... He was nowhere to be seen in the school ground or in the practice area, Ryotaro should have realized sooner that something was wrong. The pianist knew that this wasn't his fault to blame, no one in this room had seen it coming, he was very sure of that, but this feeling of guilt that was growing inside of him wasn't something he could easily push away. He had always prided himself on being observant, on realizing things sooner or better than others... And this happened... and he felt sick to the stomach to have ever even thought about such things... what better intuition and observing skills if your rival went missing for one whole week and you didn't even realize that he did?

Stupid... He felt so stupid that he wished he could dig a hole and disappear into it. But now was not the time to be thinking about this, he, they, should be focusing on Tsukimori.

Having made up his mind, Ryotaro grabbed his school bag that had been lying on the floor next to his foot and stood up, surprising the others occupants in the room somewhat with his sudden movement.

" Where has he been hospitalized, Kanazawa-sensei?" The tan asked with the utmost seriousness in his voice, and when the man couldn't react to his abrupt question on time, he rephrased it and asked once again. " Where can we visit Tsukimori, sensei?"

" Uh... Kanagawa hospital. You're going to visit him, now?"

" Yes." He answered simply. " Will all of you be coming, too?" His attention was turned to the rest of the group and quickly, they all grabbed their bags, stood up and ready to go.

Azuma's car was taking them to the hospital, it was a spacious and luxurious car, quite overwhelming to be in actually. The others were very at awe by the interiors of this thing as they were pretty much goggling everything in here. But it wasn't something that Ryotaro cared that much, not right now anyway, as he stared outside the window at the passing and blurry images of their surroundings. He knew he probably shouldn't be acting like this, since most people knew for a fact that he didn't like Tsukimori and vice versa. A part of him knew he shouldn't be this worried, but he was and he couldn't help it, not when Tsukimori was in a coma, and coma wasn't something that could be sniffed at. It was serious, and even though he had little knowledge about this medical term, it was quite common knowledge that the longer you are in a coma, the less likely you are to ever be able to wake up. And the doctors didn't know what was the cause of this either... It was worrisome indeed...

In less than fifteen minutes, they arrived at the entrance of the hospital, Ryotaro was the first to go in and ask for Len's room. _207_, he repeated the number inside his head as he and the others decided to use the stairs, the patients would need the elevator more than them and, frankly, they didn't even know if the elevator could even hold seven people. It was close either way, on the second floor as they walked along the long hall way, trying to find the room while keeping the sounds they made down to a minimum.

Finally, they reached their destination with much ease and Kanazawa knocked on the door three times.

" Come in." The voice of a woman and Ryotaro recognized it being Hamai-sama's voice, Tsukimori's mother. The door slid opened quietly and the moment he was inside the room, Ryotaro fought the urge to scrunch up his nose, the smell of detergent was even more so than that of the hall way. It was making his nose quite uncomfortable, but he otherwise didn't complain and try to ignore it.

The room was relatively big and white. Everything was white, the curtains, the floor, the paint on the wall, the bed sheets, the light, etc. so white that it somehow seemed so... wrong.

His parents were standing there next to the bed, the whole group greeted them and they did the same with a small courtesy smile despite the weariness and fatigue that enveloped their whole features.

" Thank you. It's so nice of you all to have come here and visit Len." Tsukimori-san spoke with a gentle note in his somewhat worn out voice.

" It is the least we can do in this situation." Kanazawa spoke slowly, not knowing anything better to say. Such polite people, Ryotaro thought to himself as he diverted his gaze to the main reason why they all came here.

Tsukimori lay there, eyes closed, his skin was sickly pale, face was covered with small bruises here and there, a tube ran below his nose to provide the needed oxygen. Bandages on his left wrist could easily be seen underneath the hospital gown, it must have been twisted or... broken. He looked so frail and fragile lying on that big bed, consumed by all the hooks and wires that connected his body to the machines beside him. Had it not been for the heart monitor that produced the sound of his heartbeat, quite slow and weak, Ryotaro didn't think he would have realized that Tsukimori was still alive... His breaths were so shallow and subtle that under the thick blanket that was placed over him, it didn't even seem like he was breathing, not at all.

Ryotaro felt a twinge in his heart as his throat contracted somewhat. Seeing someone who had seemed so stubborn and proud that weak and vulnerable... it wasn't right. But Ryotaro had to admit that right from the beginning, Tsukimori himself didn't give off that much of a healthy and strong image of a boy his age should be.

" The doctors said that... there is still no indication showing that he will be waking up any time soon." Tsukimori-san spoke with a strong but sad voice, his wife next to him was in too much pain to actually say anything anymore as she fought fiercely to prevent the tears from running down her cheeks. She had to stay strong for her son.

Ryotaro looked at the pair then back to Tsukimori as the beeping sound from the heart monitor and the relentless smell of detergent were starting to get under his skin. He should leave, he couldn't stand it anymore. What use could there be for him to stand there with a distasteful look on his face while people were suffering over this unexpected tragedy? He didn't want to feel it anymore, this helplessness and uselessness as he stood there still without knowing what he should do to make the situation any better. There was nothing he could do... he knew that, he knew he had no power over this, but still... Ryotaro willed his lungs to work, willed his throat to open up so that air could travel it in vain.

" I-..." He tried his best to swallow down the enormous lump that was stuck there, unmoving. He needed his voice to work properly, he couldn't just leave without saying anything. " I... I'm sorry. But I have to go now. I just realized that there is something urgent I must attend to." He made it up, a lame excuse, he knew, but that was the best he could come up with right that moment. His brain seemed to have already shut down automatically. Ryotaro bowed his head deeply. " I'm sorry. I'll be coming back later to pay him another visit." _A more proper one next time around._

" Oh, it's okay. There's no need for you to apologize. It's already good of you to have spared some time to come here and visit Len. We appreciate it much, and Len must be too. Thank you and take care on your way home."

" No... It is the least I can do. I hope that he'll start getting better soon. I'll come back again another time." With that Ryotaro slid out of the hospital ward and quickly walked down the hall way, trying to further his distance away from that room as far as possible.

Really, he couldn't stand it anymore.

Slamming the door shut, Ryotaro threw his bag down onto the nearby chair in his room and slumped down next to his bed, breathing in and out heavy and deep breaths. He had ran all the way home since the moment he was out of that hospital's gates. Sweat dripped down his face and damped hair, the pianist didn't bother to wipe them away as he sat there, lost in thoughts.

Running should have helped him clear his mind, it was his initial thought when he decided on this. But apparently, now that he had finished his run and sat down, worn out and tired, he realized that it really wasn't as helpful as it should have been. It had always been able to do the trick, to get whatever it was that he wanted off of his mind. But not this time...

That haunting image of Tsukimori lying there perfectly still and lifeless kept on flashing back before his eyes like someone had carved it into his very soul. It was frustrating, and... scary at the same time... He didn't seem like he was living anymore, and what was there on the bed was nothing more than just a mere vessel, an empty shell of what used to be Tsukimori Len. It scared Ryotaro how someone who had been arguing with him so fiercely just weeks ago could end up like... that.

Everything felt surreal, everything felt like such a total and gigantic mess that it made the pianist felt like he must be dreaming, his mind must have been the cause of all of this madness, just a dream... a nightmare that he had subconsciously created while sleeping. If so... then everything would end and come back to normal if he woke up, right? Then what should he do to wake up? Should he pinch himself? No... he fell once while running back to his house and he was still in the dream... physical pain wouldn't do it. Then what? This nightmare had been too awfully long, dragging on and on without end, he should have woken up already!

Ryotaro squeezed his eyes shut, trying to convince himself that it really was a dream despite knowing full well that it clearly wasn't. He just didn't want to believe it, he just didn't want to believe that it was really happening. It couldn't be... it couldn't...

But it was... it was as real as it could get, every detail was too vivid to be just a dream. _Stop denying the truth._ He finally told himself and for a moment there, his mind went blank... Now that he had accepted the truth, his mind shut down once again, failing to find anything to think about, not anymore. It was funny, how just seconds ago, it was flooded and overwhelmed with countless thoughts and now... there was nothing in it. Empty, completely empty and devoid of anything.

Standing up, Ryotaro stripped off his clothes, it was dripping with sweat and starting to feel uncomfortable... besides, he felt like doing something... needed to do something, so he decided to get changed.

Falling down onto the soft mattress face down, Ryotaro's eyelids were heavy, a long day of studying, excessive thinking and body exertion was taking its toll. Sleep was coming and he was welcoming it gladly with open arms... He really needed it... Ryotaro's mind was hazy as his eyes drooped down to the point of closing. Before drifting to sleep, he thought he saw something... like someone was standing there next to his bed... But he casted the thought away, probably so tired that his mind was playing tricks on him, for real this time.

" _H-eyy... heyy... w-wake upp."_ Ryotaro opened his eyes lazily, still sluggish and sleepy. Was someone calling him? He strained his ears, trying to make his mind listen for any kind of sound. But there wasn't any as he once again closed his eyes, he must have heard it wrong then. _" Wake up!"_

A chill ran down his spine as the pianist jolted awake, shivering at the sudden cold that had washed over him then disappeared almost instantly. What the hell was that?!

" _Your mother is calling."_ Wha-what?

" Ryo! Ryotaro!" Indeed, his mother really was calling for him, climbing down from his bed as he stretched his arms and neck and ready to step out of his room and see what his mother was calling him for.

" Thanks." He murmured sleepily as he walked passed someone and opened the door.

Wait.

He slammed the door shut half away through and turned around. Did he just walk pass someone? But... who could possibly be in his room? And he was damn sure that it was neither of his siblings. Then who could it be...?

" _Oh, so you finally notice, huh?"_

Ryotaro rubbed his eyes once, twice, then again, and again. But... what he was seeing before his eyes wasn't going away or anything. It still remained there as if mocking him. And this time, he really wondered to himself if he _really_ was daydreaming or what... because this image of someone who looked _very, very_ much like someone who he shouldn't be seeing standing in his room was there.

Blue hair, golden eyes, casual clothing and... with a transparent body as well...

" TSUKIMORI?!"

The figure looked like it was scowling or something, at least Ryotaro thought so, the typical scowl of Tsukimori himself.

" _Finally, I didn't think that you are the slow type, Tsuchiura."_

And his blood ran cold in his veins, literally.

_To be continued..._


	2. What is your wish?

_**Chapter 2:**_ What is your wish?

* * *

" Ryo~!" His mother called for the third time, and there was still no answer coming from him from upstairs. Was he sleeping? Gosh... normally, he would come running down after her first call, whether he had accidentally fallen asleep or not... then what was he doing up there? She sighed, maybe she should try again a little later, the woman thought to herself and continued to stir the pot she was cooking.

* * *

_This is not real!_ Ryotaro thought as he swallowed hard, backing against the door, looking for the support it provided, something he really needed at the moment. What was going on here?! Just before he drifted to sleep, Ryotaro finally convinced himself that Tsukimori being in a coma was not a dream because everything was too vivid to be just a dream... But now?! Now he was staring right in the face of Tsukimori, who clearly seemed to be somewhat transparent to his surroundings. He could see the part of his bed that should have been hidden away by Tsukimori's body if it really had been standing there!

Then what was this? What was he experiencing? So was all of this _really_ a dream? Or was he daydreaming, hallucinating or something?! His heart was racing in his ribcage, his mind working to its fullest capacity as it tried to decipher what _exactly_ was happening here.

" _Don't you know it's rude to stare at people?"_ The figure... shadow... spirit, whatever it was that resembled Tsukimori, spoke again. The sound resonated within the room, it sounded weird to the ears like it was somewhere in his head. And the source of it didn't look too pleased either, quite irritated actually.

" Uh! I-... sorry." Ryotaro quickly averted his eyes away, suddenly feeling a little heat on his cheeks. But then, he snapped himself back to the main subject, this wasn't the time to be feeling embarrassed. Once again, he swallowed, looking at the... figure again. " So... you really are Tsukimori?"

He nodded with his eyes closed, arms folded in front of his chest. " This is _not_ a dream, is it?" Ryotaro asked hesitantly once more, only wanting to confirm the truth despite knowing that it would irritate Tsukimori much. And he was right, Len's eyebrows twitched as he let out a soft sigh.

" _Listen well, Tsuchiura, and do NOT make me repeat this again. No, this is definitely not a dream. You are very much awake and this you're seeing here is... to be frank, my spirit. And... we should continue this later because your mother doesn't seem to be too happy."_

" H-huh?!" Ryotaro was somewhat taken back by the last sentence, his mind was absorbing too much information in one single afternoon to even remember that his mother had called him three times just now.

" Ryotaro!" The pianist jolted from the sudden call, now he got why Tsukimori said that. _Damn_. The pianist cursed under his breath as he looked at Len again before opening the door behind him and ran down stairs with somewhat shaky legs. It still hadn't fully sunk into his mind yet what had just happened, so he was feeling somewhat freaked out, and plus the tiredness from the long day, it was wearing him thin. Nothing seemed right anymore, he wasn't sure about anything that was going on in his life. But a headache was coming, this he was sure about.

" Yes, mom! Sorry, I fell asleep. What did you need me for?" He asked nervously after getting down the stairs and stood next to his mom. Nervous because Tsukimori's... spirit was floating there right beside him, and because when his mother got angry, she could be... quite scary...

The woman sighed. " I need you to go to the store and pick up some soy sauce, sugar and oil for me please. We're running low on them." She answered patiently, knowing quite well from how disheveled Ryotaro's hair was, he must have really been asleep. And she knew she shouldn't give him anymore unnecessary stress.

* * *

Smoothing out his hair somewhat with his hands, Ryotaro put on his sandals and got out of the door quickly and headed over to the nearby grocery store. His steps were quick, and so was his breathing and heartbeat, his movements were slightly stiff as he swallowed hard. How could he stay calm? He asked himself, especially when there was a spirit floating sharp behind his heels?!

Clearing his throat, Ryotaro tried hard to settle himself before opening his mouth to speak. He didn't want to sound too frightened, since if it really was Tsukimori next to him, he didn't want to show any weaknesses at all in front of this person.

" Why are you following me again, Tsukimori?" He stated the question, having been pondering about it from the moment it crossed his mind not long ago. " I mean, why me? Wouldn't Hino be a better choice for you to be following around with?" Sarcasm laced in his every word as his brows furrowed somewhat, suddenly feeling a bit irritated just by the thought of such thing.

" _I suggest we speak about this matter in private, now is not the time nor the place to be talking about it. Not if you don't want to be a lunatic talking to himself in people's mind."_

The pianist clamped his mouth shut, turning his eyes over to look at Tsukimori, but the angle of the light didn't allow him to see all of the other's face, and so he didn't quite catch the expression the violinist was wearing.

Opening the door into the cool air-conditioned space, Ryotaro quickly grabbed a shopping rack and turned to the isle to get the things he needed.

" _Isn't that supposed to be sugar?"_ Startled, the pianist looked to his left then instantly pointing his gaze away when everything that clouded his vision was Len with that look on his face as if asking how Ryotato had gotten that mixed up... Well, that was his assumption anyway, and he was silently cursing at himself for it. Damn... whether this was real or not, losing composure in front of _the _Tsukimori Len was humiliating as it is.

Throwing in two packs of sugar after putting the salt back to where it belong, Ryotaro quickly walked over to the cashier, wanting to get home and settle everything out as soon as possible. This was not something that could be left unattended.

* * *

Ryotaro closed the to his room, exhaling quite frustratingly before looking up at Tsukimori once again, this time without averting his eyes away.

" Explain, now. What are you doing here, and why?" Going straight into the point, he knew that no matter how much he denied it, this... this spirit wasn't going anywhere. And even if it was a dream, he would wake up soon enough. He only needed to just... go with the flow, go with the flow and things would be okay. But honestly, he didn't think it would this time round.

Tsukimori stared at him, lips opened then closed as he tried to find the right words to say because he himself thought that what he was about to say sound like it was taken straight out from fictional books, ones that he had never even bother to read.

" _I don't really understand it myself. After the accident, when I opened my eyes, I was looking at myself in the hospital ward. And before I knew it, I... sort of floated away. I couldn't stop myself, but as I was being carried by the wind through this neighborhood, something dragged me down and I ended up here, in your room. That's about to sum it up."_ Len said monotonously, trying hard not to make this story sound even more comical than it already was in his own mind.

Ryotaro didn't say anything after hearing that, knowing that even if he were to push the topic, Tsukimori wouldn't have anything else to tell him. The other looked like he was confused himself as to why this had happened. It wasn't every day that your... spirit flew out of your body.

" Then... how do we get you back to your body?"

" _I don't even know how I got out, let alone knowing how to get back in."_ Len said, sounding somewhat mocking as Ryotaro studied the expression on his face, one that he had never seen before. A kind of look that was mixed between slight frustration, irritation and... fear? It couldn't be helped really, since Tsukimori was supposed to be heading over to Vienna to study this summer. With him in a coma and spirit floating around like this, his chance to go had disappeared into thin air. The pianist knew that the other had worked hard for this, at least he figured so, Tsukimori had always been the type to work hard on everything he did.

_He must be disappointed. _The thought flashed through his mind as Ryotaro stole a quick glimpse at the violinist form, standing there as he looked outside the window, thinking about some unknown things. Well, Tsukimori had never been predictable, Ryotaro could never actually understand what was going through that head of his, but whatever it was, it couldn't have been cheerful thoughts or anything of sort. At least that was clear enough, especially with that scowl he would always wear on his face whenever he wasn't practising his violin.

" Well, in this matter, I think we should head to the library tomorrow. If I remember correctly, I think they have a section about paranormal things. Maybe we can find something useful there..."

There was this skeptical look on the other's face, but he otherwise didn't say anything and just nodded his head softly. This was a paranormal thing itself, so even if they both had been non-believers about it before, they certainly couldn't now.

Ryotaro sighed tiredly. _I have got a bad feeling about this._ He thought to himself before directing his gaze to the window, mind turning completely blank.

* * *

Len observed as the family ate their meals. They all chatted happily among themselves about random things, just daily activities that they found amusing or irritated about. Mostly they would laugh at someone's joke and enjoyed the delicious food. Len couldn't exactly pinpoint how he knew it was delicious, but he could somewhat taste it at the tip of his tongue. Why was it? The feeling was strange because obviously he wasn't eating the food or could he even be able to do so.

His eyes leered over to the pianist, who then was trying to act as normally as possible in front of his family, Len knew the reason why the guy was jumpy was because of him. He did catch them, the quick glances Tsuchiura threw at him every now and then. He didn't want things to turn out like this, and, certainly, he didn't plan to bother Tsuchiura, not even the slightest bit. But as it seemed like if he were to leave the pianist's side, he wouldn't even be able to keep his feet to the ground. And that posed a problem as it would make it even harder for him to get back into his body, being at the mercy of the wind wasn't something that would help. Who knew what would happen next?

So he had no other choice but to stick to this guy even though it was considered to be one of the last things he had ever thought of doing. But it couldn't be helped, for some unearthly reason, being near him made it possible for Len to stay in one place without being blown away.

But staring at people when they are eating is rude, he thought to himself then turned around, not knowing anything better to do, Len went to the stairs and sat down as he tried hard not to think too much. He didn't want to bring back unpleasant feelings, feelings that he didn't need.

* * *

" Do ghosts sleep?" The question suddenly popped up as the pianist's eyes looked at him, filled with nothing but curiosity.

" _Not really. And it's spirit, not ghost, Tsuchiura. I'm not dead yet." _

The pianist snorted, feeling somewhat irritated. " Yeah, yeah." The tan turned his attention back to the homework at hand. He needed to get it done quick, but still, he didn't understand why would that man give this much anyway. It was only about one week till summer vacation starts. Not that it was complicated, not to him at least, but he didn't feel like doing it, not for one single bit. This day was already too full of problems.

" _Shouldn't that be a minus?" _The voice was ringing inside his head again, and it wasn't helping his headache at all.

" What?"

" _Right here. I don't suppose you can freely change this into a plus, can't you?"_

" Damn..." Ryotaro cursed under his breath quietly after realizing what the other meant. _Please... someone, just shoot me in the head and be done with it!_

Grabbing the eraser harshly in his hand, the pianist quickly erased all traces of his stupid mistake.

" I... uh... thank you for pointing that out to me." He murmured inside his throat after struggling to finally get it out of his mind. Oh God, this was the worst case scenario that he could ever imagine!

" _It's nothing. Just... pay more attention to what you're doing. With that kind of mistake, you'll never get into university."_

Ryotaro could feel a vein popping on his head, but otherwise said nothing. _Remind me to deem this day as the day of Problems when this is finally over!_

That night, Ryotaro finished his homework as fast as possible, turning off the light, climbing into bed and pulled the cover up to his neck. He was gladly welcoming the following day, as it would be the day when they find out how to get this annoying guy back into his body and everything would be back to normal!

_Hopefully..._

* * *

Lunch bell rang as Ryotaro hurriedly rushed out of the classroom, making his way to the library. The tips of his fingers brushed slightly against the books that were neatly placed on the wooden shelves, looking for ones that were useful in the situation he, well, they were in. After picking out a few books, the pianist brought them over to the table and sat down near the windows as he began skimming to see if there were any good information.

It didn't take long until he spotted something quite intriguing and stopped to read it carefully once again. " Hey..." He said in a low tone to draw the attention of Len's spirit. " It says here that certain people that are able to see spirits and stuff usually have the same frequency as them." So this meant that... he had the same frequency as Len? Just by thinking about it sent a chill down his spine as he tried his best to suppress the urge to shiver and continued what he was reading. " And that... most spirits wander that land because they have something that they haven't finished while they were still alive. Or something that they wanted to fulfill. If so then... what is your wish?"

Ryotaro asked and all he received was total silence.

* * *

_To be continued..._

* * *

_**A/N:** _Hello everyone! So much for updating frequently huh? Well, I got more homework and assignments to do than I had bargained for, so... sorry everyone ==". And thank you Amber Ash for supporting me a lot while I was writing this :D It encouraged me a lot.


	3. Taiyaki

_**Chapter 3:**_ Taiyaki

* * *

Since young, Len had known what he needed to do, and what other people expected from him. And that was all there is to it. He became a talented son for his parents and lived up to the expectations of others as the heir of the Tsukimori family. He didn't whine like other children did, asking for toys and everything, he didn't want any of that. He had only ever focused on practising the violin and the need for toys or any other things had never actually popped up in his mind. At least he remembered so.

So for his whole life, for 17 long years, he had done exactly what others expected of him. A good, talented person with quite few words to say.

Therefore, when that question suddenly came flying out of Ryotaro's mouth... he didn't know how to answer it.

What _did_ he wish for?

The question rang inside his head as it echoed throughout his whole being. No one had ever asked him such a thing before... And now when it was voiced out, by an almost stranger no less, for the first time in his life, Len was left unable to utter a single word out of his throat. He couldn't answer it. He simply just couldn't, because he didn't even know what he himself wanted.

Len stood there, stunned, and, surprisingly enough, Ryotaro actually kept his mouth shut and sat there silently, studying Len's feature as the spirit of the violinist stood still next to the library's window. His mouth was opened then closed for a few times before something eventually came out of his lips.

" _I-I... I don't know..."_

* * *

For the first time in his life, Ryotaro saw Len struggled in an attempt to actually find something decent to say. The guy had never been one for words, but he certainly wasn't one to be lacking of them under any circumstances. _This was new._ The pianist thought to himself as he kept quiet, wanting to see how this would turn out.

And he was stunned. Ryotaro was stunned when he heard Len say that he himself didn't know what he wanted. What was this? Some kind of joke? Was he making a joke of sort? But the confused and somewhat disoriented look on that face told him otherwise. He _really_ didn't know it then...

Ryotaro had always thought that Len would be the type to know and understood all too well what he wanted and needed. And yet again he was surprised. This was the first time Len had admitted that there was _something_ that he didn't know. Even though it should have amused Ryotato much to see the other struggling like this, he wasn't. This was serious, it not only involved Len, it was also very much related to him. So much that he hated it because he didn't like the thought of having this guy following him around for the rest of enternity... The pianist fought back the urge to shiver and moved his eyes back to reading the random page in front of him that he had just flipped to.

" Well... whatever it is, just figure it out soon. It says here that seperation of body and soul shouldn't be prolonged because it may result in the soul being unable to... get back to the body at all."

They turned to look at each other for a moment there, based on what Len said then he had been away from his physical self for at least a week... It didn't sound good because there was ( of course ) no information on how long a soul could stay out of its protective shell of a body, so they could only presume the worst...

" We don't have much time left... So think hard, okay?" Ryotaro spoke slowly in a low voice, watching Len carefully as the other looked back at him without so much of a word before nodding slightly and tore his eyes away.

Suddenly, there was a twinge of what Ryotaro could only identify as _fear_ as it was softly brewing inside of him, at the pit of his stomach. However, the feeling was so strange, distant and foreign that he couldn't actually lay a finger on it. It was as if this wasn't his own feeling that he was experiencing... His eyes wandered over to where the almost transparent figure was standing near the window where the light was beaming down.

Could it be... could it be that in their current situation, they, he and Len, were somehow... connected? And perhaps this fear that was swelling far at back of his mind was, in reality, Len's fear?

He averted his gaze away, suddenly feeling this sadness seeping into him while looking at the frail figure standing there and staring blankly at something beyond the layer of glass. He dreaded the thought that was starting to loom in his head... What would happen if... if they didn't get Len back to his body in time? His body would die and that soul would forever follow him? Suddenly, the idea of having Len following him around didn't scare him anymore that much anymore ( not as much as one minute ago that is ). Rather, it was just that he didn't like what was happening and how all of this was unfolding.

If things were to turn out like that, then Len would... die a very meaningless death, and his dream along with all the talent and glory that followed would end up dying along with him. Not being able to do anything and watched as your body wither away right before your eyes... that kind of helplessness seemed so very... frightening and sad at the same time. No matter how much he disliked Len, he wouldn't want that to happen to the guy, he, no one, deserved to feel that way.

No one.

* * *

Golden eyes watched as Ryotaro interacted with his friends, classmates, juniors and seniors. Len could clearly see that the pianist was quite popular in the General Education Department, almost everyone knew him, either just by name or through all the things others were saying about him. Either way, the guy was popular. Everyone who knew him smiled and greeted him as he was walking by and he would always flash that cheerful and warm smile back at them.

From what he had collected from listening to all the chatters while trailing behind the other, Ryotaro was well-known for his good look, out-going and charming personality, intelligence, and he was, apparently, a good soccer player, too. _' The dream of many girls'_ they said.

' _So he only acts like a prick around me then...'_ Len thought absentmindedly and continued follow after the tan.

* * *

The locker room was opened, Ryotaro threw down his bag onto a small wooden bench and, without a warning, took off his shirt. Tan skin was exposed under the light and one could see all the firm muscles moving underneath the skin and the flat but strong-looking stomach. Len's eyes widened before turning his back to face Ryotaro.

" _Warn me before you change next time, Tsuchiura. Even though we're stuck together, there should still be at least _some_ privacy between us, you know."_

Ryotaro's eyes widened after hearing the words. Subconsciously, he turned around to find that the violinist was standing with his back facing him. He couldn't seethe expression on the other's face, but this sudden tiny flare of embarrassment that was making him feel slightly awkward told him just exactly what was going on. And after the initial shock, Ryotaro laughed, hard.

He laughed pretty loudly as the sound echoed inside the locker room. It was lucky that they were alone in this room, if not, things could prove to be quite troublesome. Len's eyebrow twitched, irritation was quickly overwriting whatever it was that he had just felt as he turned around to confront the pianist, who then was still laughing quite whole-heartedly.

" _What's there to laugh about, Tsuchiura? I don't remember saying anything that comical to make you laugh like a lunatic like this."_ His tone was harsh in an attempt to shut that annoying laughter, but his effort was in vain. It only served to make the tan laughed harder than he already had, and after a minute or two of laughing his gut out, Ryotaro finally tried to calm himself in order to breathe properly again.

Gosh, that was a good laugh. Ryotaro thought to himself before reaching up and wipe the tears out of his eyes. He thought he had managed to stop laughing when looking at that uninterested and irritated face of Len and the way he stood there with his arms crossed made him thought otherwise.

Really, the situation wasn't at all that funny itself, but because it involved Len and his normally cold attitude that made it all the more hilarious.

" _Done? Good. Now explain why you were laughing like that because I am sure that I didn't say anything funny, not at all."_

Ryotaro couldn't help but chuckle slightly at the sight, with Len crossing his arms and all. Seriously, it wasn't at all that intimidating as before.

" Well, because only girls will get embarrassed when they see a guy change out of his clothes, Tsukimori." He stated it out in a matter-of-factly fashion, and this made Len's eyebrows furrow even more.

" _I still don't see how that can make you laugh."_

" What can I say? Different people have different opinions. And it's not like I have anything else to offer beside what you yourself have anyways? So what's there to be embarrassed about?"

Len's mouth opened to retort, but decided not to because he knew that if this were to drag on, it would never end. _"... Just be quiet and change. You do know that you're already five minutes late, right?"_

Snapping his neck to his left to see the time, Ryotaro swore under his breath then quickly changed into his training uniform.

" Damn it! Why didn't you tell me?" He said through gritted teeth as he struggled to put on his shoes. Len merely shrugged as his lips turned up to form a small smirk.

" _Well, you were having the time of your life, so I didn't want to appear rude by cutting in just to tell you the time."_ He said, mockery lacing each word as Ryotaro raced out of the door with all he might, not wanting to get punished by the team captain.

* * *

In the end, running five laps around the field wasn't at all that bad, one lap for each minute. He had thought that the punishment could be worse, but he was apparently wrong. Maybe his captain was going easy on him was because of the fact that it was nearly the end of the semester anyways that he really wasn't in the mood to actually punish anyone to severely. Two more weeks. Two more weeks and Ryotaro would be out of school, and the holiday would officially begin.

Golden eyes watched as the tan ran around the field, passing the ball from one person to another. He was sweating profusely, but the smile was always plastered on his lips. He really did look like he was having a good time himself, and for some strange reason, Len felt like there was a small spark ignited inside of him as this tiny bit of excitement was flaring up...

Strange... There was no reason for him to be feeling like this...

His eyes followed Ryotaro's movement on the soccer field then it dawned upon him. Was he somehow connected to the pianist? The question rang inside his mind, it didn't seem like there was any other explanation for this. Why would he feel excited in his current situation?

That must be it, their souls must have been connected in some strange way that could make them somewhat feel the emotions of each other. Len stood there, looking down at the green grass bathing in the afternoon sunlight.

He didn't really know whether this was actually good or bad. Truth to be told though, from the beginning, there hadn't been anything good or lucky about this. The whole situation itself was messed up.

* * *

Ryotaro was helping his mother out in the kitchen, and soon the food was being neatly placed down onto the table. The little brother of the house started laying out the clean bowls and chopsticks for everyone as the father came in with his wife after changing out of his suit, he just came back from work not too long ago.

The food was good, Len thought to himself, so it was due to this connection that he was able to have even the slightest of taste in his mouth. The violinist took one last glance before floating back to the foot of the staircase and sat down. He wasn't dead, not yet, so his spirit was still pretty much powerful, powerful enough for him to be able to touch and move solid things to a certain extent. His eyes strayed out at the door and the bright street light that was shining through its thick glass.

Ryotaro turned his eyes over at the foot of the staircase as he put a piece of radish in his mouth. After realizing that they were emotionally connected, Ryotaro understood more or less that Len's emotion was like the surface of a calm pond, no wind, no ripples, no nothing. It was as flat and calm as a mirror reflecting the blue sky above with a mist curtain surrounding it, shielding it away from prying eyes. Before, most of the time, he couldn't really tell what in the world Len was feeling, he kept to himself pretty well with that face always remained in an indifferent state. However, as things had unfolded quite rapidly recently, Ryotato thought that he had somehow found away to get through the mist, slowly, but steadily, he was getting there. The closer he got, the better he was at interpreting Len's emotions, and what was going through his mind at times. Like he said, the violinist's emotions were pretty much calm most of the time, but because of that very same reason, even a small drop of water would disturb the whole pond, sending ripples coursing through its mirror-like surface, disrupting the peace. With him going further and further through the curtain, he could definitely feel the changes from deep within...

It was not like he was prying, even if this was considered so, he couldn't actually help it. This connection had been set up with neither of their knowledge nor permission. Even if he did get a glance at Len's heart, it wouldn't change anything. In the end, when everything was over, they would remain as they were before all of this had happened. Rivals.

No more, no less.

* * *

Ryotaro was quite unpredictable, Len knew that for a fact, but now that there was sort of a bridge connecting their emotions, he could understand that all the more clearer. Crystal clear in fact.

As more and more time passed by, Len could sense the waves of emotions better. Sometimes, it was like fire, passionate, determined and strong-willed. Sometimes he could be just as equally cold and uncaring, indifferent or even annoyed at things he didn't like. Suddenly, Len wondered to himself whether or not those were the feelings the pianist had whenever Len was around. He had always looked pissed, annoyed and uncomfortable in the presence of Len. Maybe then he was still feeling them, that was pretty much certain, since Len was constantly around him now.

" Ever tried out Taiyaki at the stand nearby?" The pianist closed the door behind him and sat down at his desk, taking the hot and steamy fish-shaped cake out from the paper bag. He looked almost happy to be holding it in his hands and eating it. " They are seriously good!"

Len looked sceptical as he eyed the cake, it looked just like any other Taiyaki he had seen. What was so special about it?

" _I don't like sweets."_ Len stated flatly, he had never liked sweet, and the cake normally has sweetened red beans in it, so he didn't like the thought of eating though many had tried to persuade him to. And it wasn't long before the taste of the cake started spreading all over his taste buds. He should have felt nauseous, he didn't know if spirits could get nauseous or not, but when he was still in his body, whenever he ate something that was slightly too sweet for him to take, he could feel pile coming up his throat. That was the main reason why he didn't want to get near sweet food. Strangely though, he didn't. He wasn't at all nauseous. The bean filling was actually very... good. It was just at the correct sweetness for him and even though he wasn't really eating it, Len could tell that the cake was good.

" Does that mean you have never eaten any Taiyaki before?! Wow..." Ryotaro said in a tone of disbelief as he stared at his half-eaten Taiyaki then back to Len. " I know, how about we buy you one at the store when you get back to your body? You'll like it, trust me."

Pissed, annoyed and uncomfortable... Len was so sure that Ryotaro would feel like this whenever he was around... Then why hadn't he felt any of those negative emotions? Why did he felt so peaceful, calm and... warm?

" I mean, it's better eating for real than to be told what it is like, right?"

Suddenly, a smile broke on his lips. A big, gentle and warm smile. And Len was genuinely stunned by this. Somehow, his stomach felt so strange and fluttery.

" _S-sure."_

Len lowered his head and turned his gaze to the window.

Just because he had had a look into Ryotaro's emotions didn't mean that things were going to change between them. When this is all over, Ryotaro and he would turn back to ignoring each other's existence. And that was it.

Nothing would change.

* * *

_To be continued..._


End file.
